The Daily times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1886-1889, 1887-03-22
RIFLE SHOOTING.
rse OLD KENTUCKY STYLE AND
IT'S MODERN NOTIFICATIONS.
An Interview with a Veteran Riheman.
The Kentucky Hunters Method of
Taking Aim-The Plainsman's Way.
cerman Rihemen-Military Style.

I'm the palmy days Of Crcedmoor no man
ras better known on the range than Jim
C,nln. the rifeman. The veteran has given
ND long range shooting but still talks in
.frictively about handling firearms
What can YOU tell about the methods and
principles Of offhand shootingi" be was asked.
Il can begin by telling how to stand while
shooting. he replied "The Kentucky style
OF ofhand shooting was the right thing and
hasn't been improved upon. Let us go back
20 the old original Kentucky shooters OF the
Daniel Boone type and see how they shot, for
they were the first accurate rifemen in the
world. and rifle shooting may be said TO have
i..u born in the backwoods. Here is a genu-
,pe Kentucky squirrel rife The barrel is
forty inches long-ten inches longer than the
.o9rfing rife Of to-day, and there is metal
.,ough i'm IL for a crowbar. The whole piece
is folr feet eight inches in length and weighs
about twelve pounds The stock runs the
whole length Of the barrel, same as a musket,
and there is a brass box In the butt for
matches IL takes a strong man 10 hold such
s. Gun 10 his shoulder offhand, because the
Larrel is SO heavy forward. Old Kentuck
didn't hold it that way when he could find
ANYTHING 10 rest it upon. When he wanted
fo draw a bead on q redskin he looked for
loe on a sapling 10 rest the barrel against.
Powder was powder in those days, and it
didn't pay to waste a shot. When there was
mo- ,apling handy the Kentucky hunter made
use Of his ramrod. He always had a hickory
rnmrod that he whitfield out himself, and was
a. proud Of its perfect shape and finish as n
fisherman is Of his fancy bamboo fly rod. He
woud take the ramrod out and hold it in his
left hand, with one end against his hip, 50 as
10 make brace TO support the weight OF the
rifle and steady his arm. he would do some
pretty fine shooting at short range The Ken
tuclv rife carried ball 32-l00 OF an inch in
diameter. the size OF our modern 81 caliber,
and was loaded with not over sixty grains OF
powder. and twenty rods was considered
pretty good range for accurate shooting with
il ofband In loading linen patch was
used 10 cover the ball and take the grooves,
and. as there was but little friction, the ball
came out smooth and had low trajectory at
short range
Now we get down to the Kentucky style
OF shooting with a modern sporting rifle.
The first thing is TO stand erect, feet near
together, body easily balanced. Grasp
the fore end between the left thumb and
forefnger at a point just trihe forward
of where the rife viii balance. The right
hand grasps the stock so that the barrel,
hand. wrist and forearm are in line, the
same as in holding a pistol Raise the butt
70 the shoulder so that the curve will just
lit. not resting the lower point Of the butt
against the shoulder as some do. The rife
then falls into the palm Of the left hand and
the ends of the fingers just touch the right
side Of the barrel You don't draw the
rife toward you with the left hand at
all, but merely support its weight,
with the elbow in q vertical line eI-
sctly under the barrel The light elbow
Is raised as high as the top Of the ear when
you drop your cheek against the ball OF your
thumb, bringing your right eye in with the
sights The right hand draws the rife firmly
against the shoulder, and the fore finger
presses not pulls the trigger. The Kentucky
method of taking aim is TO raise the muzzle
in line, and shoot when it gets up to the right
elevation, although few shoot on the drop.
That is the style of shooting adopted by the
best ofhand riHemen in the world the
American frontiersman of the past-and
have taught it for great many years An
old Kentucky method Of shooting at the word
was TO hold the rife butt against the shoulder,
muzzle pointing vertically TO the ground,
keep the eye fixed upon the mark, and raise
the rifle, with the butt as pivot, quickly to
the line Of sight.
2 "The plainsmen Of to-day hold a rifle dliier-
emily, but they shoot under somewhat differ
ent conditions, and no doubt their style is
best adapted TO their needs. They extend the
left arm to full length without rightly and
grasp the barrel well out toward the muzzle.
This gives better control over the barrel in
shooting at moving objects, and the principle
is the same as in trap shooting with a scatter
gun. DR.. Carver shoots in this way, and he
demonstrates that the extended arm enables
the shooter to follow moving object better
with the Iuuzzle and change the line Of sight
more quickly and accurately. In firing from
horseback the advantages of this style are APP
parent. The nearer the left hand IS 10 the
muzzle the less deviation does any accidental
or unavoidable movement of the hand and
arm make in the aim. If the left hand Is
close to the trigger guard movement OF half
an inch there will move the muzzle an inch
and q half at least
The German method is radically different
from the American. Go TO schuetzenfest
and notice how the chaps in Kossuth hats and
green aprons handle their rifles. They are
great fellows for shooting with rest but
they do get down TO offhand work. The
German balances his rife on the ends of his
left thumb aud fingers, with his elbow resting
on his left hip The left foot is advanced and
the body bent backward little to give the
hip rest for the elbow The right hand bare
" grasps the stock, but the arm Is relaxed
and very little power is exerted by the mus
cles to press the butt against The shoulder. A
hair trigger is used, and mere touch fires
the rifle. The Germans do some good shoot
ing, but you can't call that sort Of thing hold
ing rife 1t is simply balancing the piece
and touching the trigger; and it would be i'm
practicable for sporting and quick shooting.
Sometimes a German rifeman has handle
about six inches long which he attaches to
the under side Of the rifle just for
ward Of the guard. The end OF this
continuance rests in the palm OF his left
hand and in that way be gets better hip
rest without bending his body SO much, and
at the same time raises the barrel 70 the level